Ice Ages

A great deal of what scientists know about the ice ages they have learned from the study of mountain glaciers. For example, when a glacier moves downward out of its mountain source, it carves out a distinctive shape on the surrounding land. The "footprints" left by continental glaciers formed during the ice ages are comparable to those formed by mountain glaciers.

The transport of materials from one part of the earth's surface to another part is also evidence for continental glaciation. Rocks and fossils normally found only in one region of the the earth may be picked up and moved by ice sheets and deposited elsewhere. The "track" left by the moving glacier provides evidence of the ice sheets movement. In many cases, the moving ice may actually leave scratches on the rock over which it moves, providing further evidence for changes that took place during an ice age.